[Nurumaiel]

Hamson finished what was left of his breakfast and, picking his plate up, stood and went to the counter, where he handed the plate over. "Thank you for the excellent breakfast," he said. "Please tell the cook how much I enjoyed it." He began to turn, but then he stopped and turned red, shifting from one foot to the other and looking down at the floor. At last he spoke, though slowly and uncertainly. "Er... if you see Miss Melilot Sackville-Baggins, will you tell her I'm over by the stable and would she join me as soon as possible?" Then, grinning as though a great weight had been taken off his mind, he strode airily out of the Inn.

It was a beautiful morning. Or, at least, in Hamson's eyes it was. He wasn't sure what the others at the Inn thought of the rain, but he enjoyed it. The sight of the rain falling softly on the rolling green hills of the Shire was pleasant, and the feel of the rain on his face was refreshing. Pausing a moment till his hair was wet, he walked towards the stable, humming a lively tune. Deciding Melilot wouldn't want to sit out in the rain, he got under the shelter of the roof and sat upon the grass with his back against the stable, making certain he was in a position where Melilot could see him when she came out.

He had awhile to wait. Melilot was sleeping late that day, and it was a full hour before Melilot came out. But Hamson passed the time easily by singing songs, as well as composing some of his own. The latter wasn't very often, though, because his imagination wasn't as it was the day before (no doubt it had been exhausted from his tricks on Melilot). Thinking on his tricks of Melilot, he began to sing the following song, though not sincerely, as could be seen by the chuckles and rolling of eyes in between lines.

Black is the color of my true love's hair
Her lips are like some rosy fair
The purest eyes and the neatest hands
I love the ground whereon she stands.

"Ha. The ground on which she stands I try to avoid, lest she gives me a hearty punch," he murmured, grinning. Then, humming a little song he had just composed about the beauty of the Shire, his eyes lit up when he saw Melilot coming out of the Inn. A little frown came to her pretty face when she saw the rain falling from the sky and she seemed to be considering going back indoors. "Oh, Melilot, my darling, would you leave me?" Hamson cried with a laugh, jumping up. "Come here, cousin, I want to talk to you about something."

Her eyes rested on him and she called back. "I also would like to speak with you, Hamson. And, whether you like it or not, it concerns that hole."

"Oh, but that's exactly what I want to talk about." He jumped up and strode through the rain towards her, taking her hand. "You probably don't want to get wet, so run as fast as you can," he said. "I wouldn't like to talk in the Inn, for you might lose your temper and disturb the other guests. But the stable is rather quiet and I don't think anyone will mind over there. Now, one... two... three!"

He dragged her over the grass towards the shelter of the stable roof. She glared at him angrily, then sunk onto the grass. "Now, Mel-ilot," he said, hastily correcting himself. "I'm trying to figure out a way for both of us to be happy, and I'm coming upon something."

"Good, that's all I wanted to know," she said, standing up. With a fleeting smile at him, she turned towards the Inn and ran back. Glancing over her shoulder at him as she opened the door, she called, "Instead of worrying yourself over it, Hamson, why don't you realize that the only way for both of us to be happy is if you just give that hole to me." Then she disappeared inside.

Hamson stood up and stared after her, then he grimaced and refrained himself from kicking the stable way. "Why didn't she let me finish?" he grumbled, and sat down again. For the next two hours he sat by the stable out of the rain, singing songs and thinking about how to solve the problem of the hole... and not in the way Melilot wanted.